Published: Sunday, January 13, 2013 at 5:09 p.m.

Last Modified: Sunday, January 13, 2013 at 5:09 p.m.

Garry Coston of Ellenton founded Fresh Start for the homeless partly because he himself overcame being homeless.

PHOTO BY CHRISTINE HAWES

It was 2002, and Coston was homeless and in despair. He remembers saying a prayer: "Dear God, if you get me out of this situation, I will serve you. I will help the needy. I will do anything you want me to do."

Coston's prayer was answered over the next year. And in 2004, he followed through on his promise by founding Fresh Start, a nonprofit group that focuses on helping the homeless connect with agencies and services they need.

"I've been there, done that," says Coston, 56.

He works from his home office in Ellenton to connect the homeless with food banks, housing opportunities, mental health services and key agencies like the Community Coalition on Homelessness and Manatee Community Action Agency, which are Manatee County's two recipients of Season of Sharing funds.

"One thing I've learned about those who are homeless or needy is that things happen," Coston says. "Most people will say, 'what do you mean?' They see these people in the bushes and in the woods, or standing on the corner with signs, and they think they're worthless and don't want to work. But I know that nothing is further away from the truth."

Coston says his own experience has helped him understand that "the root cause of homelessness" is usually a broken home, a broken family, or some form of abuse.

He came from just such a family. His father left when he was about two years old, and his mother turned Coston over to his grandmother. Coston was soon abused by a male relative, an experience that Coston says left him "not thinking right" for much of his life.

Following 20 years of military service, Coston struggled to integrate back into society in the mid-1990s. He could not keep a job or maintain healthy relationships and found himself often exploited by friends.

But shortly after offering up his prayer of desperation, Coston received an unexpected tax refund check from a previous job. He used the money to obtain a small apartment.

Coston also encountered, by chance on a bus, someone familiar with "Gulf War illness," a condition experienced by almost one-third of all Gulf War veterans that leads to constant fatigue, muscle pain, migraine headaches, a distended stomach and other debilitating conditions.

Coston followed the stranger's recommendation to meet with a specialist and was eventually treated and compensated for his condition, which developed after his service in the Gulf War in 1990-91. Since founding Fresh Start in 2004, Coston has worked full-time helping the homeless find needed services.

On any given month, he says, he helps about 100 people, 20 percent of whom are long-term cases, including many waging a lifelong battle against some form of addiction. Coston's client list includes Benjamin Hampton.

"He's helped me to get on disability, to get food when I couldn't, to get the medication I needed, and to make it to my doctor's appointments," says Hampton, who suffers from epilepsy and several mental illnesses. "He's a great person who will help the underprivileged in any way he can."

<p><em>ELLENTON</em> - Garry Coston remembers a time when he felt fortunate to eat a drunken stranger's discarded chicken sandwich.</p><p>It was 2002, and Coston was homeless and in despair. He remembers saying a prayer: "Dear God, if you get me out of this situation, I will serve you. I will help the needy. I will do anything you want me to do."</p><p>Coston's prayer was answered over the next year. And in 2004, he followed through on his promise by founding Fresh Start, a nonprofit group that focuses on helping the homeless connect with agencies and services they need.</p><p>"I've been there, done that," says Coston, 56.</p><p>He works from his home office in Ellenton to connect the homeless with food banks, housing opportunities, mental health services and key agencies like the Community Coalition on Homelessness and Manatee Community Action Agency, which are Manatee County's two recipients of Season of Sharing funds.</p><p>"One thing I've learned about those who are homeless or needy is that things happen," Coston says. "Most people will say, 'what do you mean?' They see these people in the bushes and in the woods, or standing on the corner with signs, and they think they're worthless and don't want to work. But I know that nothing is further away from the truth."</p><p>Coston says his own experience has helped him understand that "the root cause of homelessness" is usually a broken home, a broken family, or some form of abuse.</p><p>He came from just such a family. His father left when he was about two years old, and his mother turned Coston over to his grandmother. Coston was soon abused by a male relative, an experience that Coston says left him "not thinking right" for much of his life.</p><p>Following 20 years of military service, Coston struggled to integrate back into society in the mid-1990s. He could not keep a job or maintain healthy relationships and found himself often exploited by friends.</p><p>But shortly after offering up his prayer of desperation, Coston received an unexpected tax refund check from a previous job. He used the money to obtain a small apartment.</p><p>Coston also encountered, by chance on a bus, someone familiar with "Gulf War illness," a condition experienced by almost one-third of all Gulf War veterans that leads to constant fatigue, muscle pain, migraine headaches, a distended stomach and other debilitating conditions.</p><p>Coston followed the stranger's recommendation to meet with a specialist and was eventually treated and compensated for his condition, which developed after his service in the Gulf War in 1990-91. Since founding Fresh Start in 2004, Coston has worked full-time helping the homeless find needed services.</p><p>On any given month, he says, he helps about 100 people, 20 percent of whom are long-term cases, including many waging a lifelong battle against some form of addiction. Coston's client list includes Benjamin Hampton.</p><p>"He's helped me to get on disability, to get food when I couldn't, to get the medication I needed, and to make it to my doctor's appointments," says Hampton, who suffers from epilepsy and several mental illnesses. "He's a great person who will help the underprivileged in any way he can."</p>